1503

1503 (MDIII) was a common year in the Julian calendar. In Europe, the year reflected ongoing political and religious changes amid the Renaissance and the Italian Wars that shaped the period.

A major religious development was the death of Pope Alexander VI on August 18, marking the end of his controversial Borgia papacy. A papal conclave elected Pius III, who reigned only briefly before his death later that year. Subsequently, Giuliano della Rovere was elected pope as Julius II, beginning a notably energetic pontificate that would influence church and political affairs in the following years.

In Florence, the artist Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned by the Signoria to paint a large fresco of the Battle of Anghiari in the Hall of the Five Hundred. The project was pursued for a time but ultimately not completed, and the large work has not survived. This period is also associated with Leonardo’s broader influence on Renaissance art and ideas, including discussions about his portraits and techniques. The Mona Lisa is often dated to around 1503–1506, and many scholars believe she began under Leonardo’s hand in this period.

Exploration and international contact continued to expand in 1503. Maritime powers, particularly Portugal, maintained and extended overseas ventures, pushing down the coast of Africa and increasing activity toward the Indian Ocean and other regions. These maritime efforts contributed to a growing network of trade, navigation, and cultural exchange that would influence global history in the ensuing decades.

Deaths of note in 1503 include Pope Alexander VI and Pope Pius III, marking a shift in papal leadership and signaling the transitional period that would lead to Julius II’s papacy and its distinctive program of religious and political initiatives.